The objective of this Working Group is to identify market demands, supply chain challenges and legislative restrictions that need to be considered so as to ensure a successful introduction of active and intelligent fibre-based packaging in real-world applications. Technological solutions discussed in WG1 will be considered from a different point of view to understand the optimal strategies for their development from lab scale to market application. Strong interaction with the industry will be needed in order to understand technological issues for the scaling-up and industrialisation of different processes, as well as to identify the non-technological problems that could endanger their market introduction. Legislative limitations will be discussed comparing the European situation with that of other countries where smart packaging has already found its way to the market and consumer expectations will be analysed for the different types of active and intelligent fibre-based packaging solutions, trying to clarify what active packaging means for consumers and which features have higher added value for the general public.
Methods and means
Workshops/discussions will be organised to address industrial issues and to help the industry enter the market with new smart packaging. Every year one or two specific meetings will be dedicated to a ‘problem box’ focusing on industrial challenges. Industry can introduce their current problems or issues, and one (or more) will be selected to be discussed using problem-solving methods (for example Ishikawa, 5 Whys, or TRIZ) and brainstorming techniques during the meetings. Furthermore, the meetings will be used in order to gather information, consumers’ associations will be invited and the events will be open to non-experts for participation in order to reach the general public. The results of these activities will be discussed in multidisciplinary panels formed by technologists, industry covering the whole value chain, and market experts. The aim is to define strategies for an efficient industrialisation and market introduction of active and intelligent fibre-based packaging solutions. In particular, actions to be undertaken for the evolution of possible solutions from TRL 8 to11 will be considered.
Anticipated results
The main results of WG2 will be the preparation of a publication, targeted towards the industry and non-experts, summarising the information collected as well as guidelines resulting from the discussion. A seminar and workshop will be organised for the same reason and a road map will be used as guideline to provide directions towards market implementation.